Sachin Tendulkar, on Tuesday, turned down the offer to become India's Test captain just two days before his appointment was to be formally announced in Mumbai.
Rahul Dravid had relinquished the position in September and the selectors were to meet later this week to announce his replacement in Tests.
With Tendulkar turning down captaincy, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, who led India to the Twenty20 World Cup triumph, and took over the helm for ODIs as well, is now favourite for the top job.
The Indian team has also been without a coach since Greg Chappell stepped down following India's first round exit in the one-day World Cup.
Venkatesh Prasad and Robin Singh are the bowling and fielding coaches respectively, while Lalchand Rajput has been the manager of the team since the Twenty20 World Cup.
A BCCI source said Tendulkar had given his views to the BCCI President and selectors.
"I cannot say what prompted him to take such a decision but it is some personal reason. All I can say is that he does not want to be the Test captain at this stage," the source said.
The selectors will meet in Mumbai on Thursday to announce team for the remaining three one-day internationals against Pakistan.